Brother Octopus a weird band in a weird town
Brother Octopus may claim to be an actual octopus, but his – its – music is completely and utterly human. Scan their lyrics for cephalopodic references. There aren’t any. They write songs that deal with childhood: “Do you remember when the floor was lava, only the sofa was safe to travel?” With the future: “If […]
Courage! There is hope for Gord Downie
It’s been an emotional day for Canadian music fans, with the sad and sudden news that Tragically Hip frontman Gordon Downie has terminal brain cancer – and that after receiving treatment, his doctor has given him the OK to proceed with a tour of selected Canada towns this summer. UPDATE: The dates announced Wednesday include […]
Middle Eastern musician finds muse in Edmonton
Mohsin Zaman lived most of his life in Dubai, United Arab Emirates – and only when he came to Edmonton did he start seriously making music. Now he sounds “Albertan.” Coincidence? Maybe. Maybe not. The 29-year-old singer-songwriter says he had a “strict upbringing” from his hard-working Pakistani parents, who moved to Dubai in 1978. The […]
Beyonce slays rainy night in Edmonton
Of course Beyonce’s Formation tour began with the song called Formation – she and her dancers entered the stage at Commonwealth Stadium on Friday night draped head to toe in sparkly black with tall felt pilgrim hats and Beyoncé warming the crowd up by getting people screaming, “I SLAY!” And slay, Queen B did. The […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Is Edmonton a Beyonce kinda town?
Is Beyonce any bigger a draw than she was in 2007 or 2009? Because she played Edmonton those years, and neither show sold out. That was in Rexall Place – and now she’s at Commonwealth Stadium on Friday. Tickets are still available. Granted, this is only one of two dates in Canada on her Formation […]
Selena Gomez a star above her music
In a world of love songs about love and dance songs about dancing, Selena Gomez is a pop star about being a pop star. They spent a lot of money and energy making her look great at Rexall Place Monday night – more effort than was spent on the songs themselves, so great was the […]
NDP MLA puts music to public service
The list of professional musicians elected to government office is very short indeed. In fact, David Shepherd – MLA for Edmonton-Centre – seems to be the only example in Alberta history. He performs Thursday at the Needle Vinyl Tavern: “Shepapalooza” – also featuring White Lightning and Ben Spencer – which turns out to be a […]
Harpdog Brown gets real
If Harpdog Brown has been faking it all these years, he deserves an Oscar – in addition to his two consecutive Maple Blues Awards for the best blues harmonica player in Canada, plus the Juno nomination. He’s too convincing for it to be an affectation. By now, more than 35 years after he started with […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Hedleyheads heart Hedley
It’s always both a blessing and a curse when your favourite band plays a show at Rexall Place. On the one hand, you get to share the experience with a lot of other people. On the other hand, you’re going to have to pay arena concert prices to see them, and pray to the gods […]
The Who bids farewell to Edmonton Coliseum
It almost escaped me that The Who on Sunday night was likely the last time I’d see a band at Rexall Place … or rather, the Coliseum. It’s always been the Coliseum to me, regardless of whatever corporate entity owned it. I’d been going there since I was a kid, when my mom would take […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Band together for Fort McMurray
Given the swift and overwhelming support from all Albertans in the wake of the terrible fire ravaging Fort McMurray, it’s likely a lot of musicians at this weekend’s gigs will be helping, too. Not by picking up shovels, but by doing what they do: To spread the word to their fans about the No. 1 […]
Metal culture exploded at Shredmonton
There are a lot of funny things about heavy metal culture – and it’s not clear if metalheads are in on the joke. For instance: BAND NAMES: Dying Fetus is one of the shockingly named bands playing the inaugural Shredmonton, a heavy metal conference and showcase happening May 6-8. Also on the list are bands […]
